Release
by Sharem
Summary: Dannon Mahariel, Dalish elf and Commander of the Grey, searches for the woman he loves more than life itself. The ending is not how he planned...Set at the end of Witch Hunt.


**Disclaimer**: Dragon Age Origins/Awakening belongs to Bioware and EA Games

**AN**: Back on the Cheeky Monkeys forum, I asked for guidance for ideas/pairings for stories that are based on songs and other music. This one was suggested by _Lady Cailan, _a fantastic author here, for my music choice, _The Way of the Sword_. It's an instrumental piece from the movie The Last Samurai. Her suggestion was a m!Warden/Morrigan pairing. I hope I did it justice.

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><p><strong>Release<strong>

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><p>Dannon Mahariel glanced up from the campfire and sighed. His current travelling companions were new with the exception of his mabari hound, Wolf. Arianne was Dalish and a warrior like himself, but she was only on this quest to retrieve her clan's stolen tome. Finn, the strange shemlen mage, was with them for his language and translation skills. However, all the man wanted was to see an actual eluvian. The two weren't his friends, just people he ran into on his quest.<p>

He needed to find Morrigan. He needed to tell her how he felt about her. After all the time that passed since the defeat of the Archdemon, Dannon finally realized how much the witch meant to him. She was his reason for living, both figuratively and literally.

The elf closed his stormy blue eyes, his thoughts going back to the last night he spent with Morrigan. Even if it was just sex to the woman, it was more than that to him. He remembered her sighs, her moans, her crying out his name as she came several times that night. He made it his mission that night to make it as pleasurable as possible, so that she would remember their lovemaking for years to come.

Dannon's reverie was broken when Arianne asked him he was okay. He just nodded at the woman and turned his gaze at the shem with them. Finn was talking to himself and writing something in a journal. The mage was intent on writing their adventure to find an eluvian to the exclusion of everything else. This caused the Warden to shake his head and chuckle a bit, finding that the mage was actually growing on him. He might even call the fool a friend of sorts.

Finn was particularly strong in the healing arts…the Wardens needed strong healers, especially after Anders disappeared.

The Warden told the others that he will take the last watch and proceeded to go to his bedroll. Wolf looked at his master and whined, his soulful eyes staring at him. He reached over and scratched the hound behind the ears and smiled. The mabari was a comfort these past weeks. The dog missed the witch almost as much as he. As he laid down on his bedroll and felt his body relax and fall asleep…

There she was, just as beautiful as Dannon remembered. He became focused on her with Arianne and Finn disappearing in a haze. He walked up to Morrigan as she stood up after petting Wolf. Her golden eyes held a look of longing in them before shuttering the emotions away. This caused the elf to look at her in confusion before standing in front of her. He asked her why she was there, why it looked like she was leaving. He also asked her about their child.

The witch explained that the child is out of reach, in a place not even Flemeth could reach. She also said that change was coming to the world. Just as she was about to leave, Dannon grabbed Morrigan's arm and pulled her flush against his drakescale armor. He whispered in her ear to take him with her, that he would do anything she asked. He told her that she was his reason for living.

This caused Morrigan's eyes to widen before she kissed the Warden passionately, not caring at all for the other people present. They broke away, both of them panting for breath. The witch played with Dannon's white hair, the long braid coming undone and flowed around the elf's shoulders. The sorrow in her eyes showed up again as she gently pushed him away.

"Why, Morrigan?" Dannon whispered, his eyes bright with unshed tears. "I love you. You mean more to me than my clan, more than me being the Warden-Commander…You mean more to me than life itself."

"Do not ask me again, my heart," Morrigan answered, not meeting his gaze. "Where I go, you cannot follow. You still have a destiny to follow and I am no longer to be a part of it. 'Tis only truth that I tell you now."

"And the child, what will become of our son?" the Warden asked, trying to get closer to the woman he loved.

Morrigan cast a glyph of paralysis around Dannon, forcing him to stay and listen. "I already told you everything I am able to. Our son is safe, be assured of that." She walked over to the paralyzed Warden and gently stroked his tattooed cheek. "In time, you will find another to love, be the person man or woman. This one will give you the strength to forge through the dark times ahead. Goodbye, my love."

Dannon tried shouting out to the witch, to get her to turn around and take him with her. He helplessly watched as she turned one more gaze at him, a single tear rolling down her pale cheek. She dropped her eyes to the ground and then took in a deep breath and stepped through the eluvian. The moment she was gone, the mirror went dark and the paralysis spell dissipated. This caused the elf to fall to the ground, shouting for Morrigan to come back.

He did not hear Finn and Arianne rush to him. He did not feel their hands pull him up to his feet and drag him to what appeared to be an old campsite within the lair. He heard Arianne exclaim about finding her clan's tome, but did not turn to look at her. What he did not expect was a hand on his shoulder from the shem.

"Are…are you going to be alright?" Finn asked quietly, for once showing concern for the Warden instead of the eluvian.

Dannon closed his eyes and placed a hand on the one the mage placed on his shoulder. "I… will be… but…."

"But it will take time," the young mage finished, slightly startled by the elf's hand on his. "What will you do now?"

The Warden looked up at Finn and then at Arianne, who was watching the two with interest. He realized that during their short time together that these two have become friends to him. The barest hint of a smile appeared on Dannon's elven face. "How would the two of you like to become Wardens?"

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><p><strong>AN:<strong> This really isn't my best...but I do like Dannon. Maybe I should do more on him?


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